Chapter 132

Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW

Chapter 132: Aerial Support for Zambia

In fact, there was an audacious pilot in the air forces of these countries who took the risk and tried to mimic Lin Mo’s flying maneuvers. The result was disastrous: he crashed one of the previously acquired J-10s. Such dangerous flying actions were nearly equivalent to suicide, ending in destruction and loss of life. No matter how advanced the fighter jet, it still required a skilled pilot to operate it.

This reckless pilot made the nations purchasing the J-10s realize that advanced aircraft must come with exceptional flying skills.

The document sent to Lin Mo was optional rather than mandatory. If Lin Mo chose not to go, someone else would impersonate the code name "Gold Coin" to fool the locals; after all, there were always ways to manage.

Recently, Lin Mo was in dire financial straits while trying to create the “Monstrosity.” Just then, a lucrative opportunity presented itself: he would receive a substantial per diem for this trip. Without much hesitation, he agreed to go, especially since the region was rich in mineral resources, providing plenty of chances for the gold giant dragon to acquire more materials for his combat aircraft.

“Captain Lin Mo! How could you consider going to Africa?! That place is hot, poor, chaotic, with terrible sanitary conditions and swarming with all kinds of dangerous creatures!”

Captain Pan from the Aircrew Group expressed his confusion at Lin Mo’s decision. Although the stir caused by the Kazakh operation was significant, Lin Mo had been largely kept under wraps to avoid further attention and was now suddenly set to support a small African nation by helping train their pilots.

If they knew Lin Mo had less than a year of flight experience and only around 400 flight hours, they might have their doubts. Those still flying training aircraft likely had more experience than him.

For Old Pan, he preferred Lin Mo to stick to tinkering with his peculiar “Monstrosity” in the hangar.

“Idle time is still idle time. With fewer missions right now, I might as well earn some extra cash. You’ve seen it; this project is burning through my funds!” Lin Mo patted the still-pitiful-looking “Monstrosity” jet, adding, “I’m still worried about where to get the engine.”

Every part of an aircraft holds significant military value, especially the core engine. Despite collecting numerous aircraft parts, Lin Mo had yet to find a single jet engine, not even the most outdated one. Once an engine was declared unserviceable, it would be promptly returned to the manufacturer for dismantling and destruction, leaving no chance for technology leaks or reverse engineering.

Old Pan shook his head. “You’re in for a high cost! Aren’t you saving any money for yourself? If you spend it all here, your project is doomed. A propeller-driven aircraft could be manageable, but a jet-powered fighter jet? I think that’s a stretch, especially with these performance parameters.” He considered Lin Mo to be utterly obsessed, pouring so much money into something that seemed hopeless.

“Hahaha! I’m still young! I’ll get it flying in the blue skies!” Lin Mo laughed heartily. If he simply threw the gold coins into the air, it might fly immediately, but that was not his desired outcome.

Nothing felt more rewarding than creating his own aircraft as a weapon of combat. In this otherworld, every peak expert wielded a weapon forged by their own hands; only familiar weapons could unleash their ultimate power.

Lin Mo had never considered how impossible it seemed to the world for him to manually create a fighter jet with such astonishing capabilities.

He glanced at the wooden model and then at the skeletal frame still under construction, Old Pan held no expectations.

“Old Pan, while I’m away, keep an eye on my treasures! Don’t let anyone damage them!” Lin Mo warned Old Pan in advance.

With many hands, mishaps could easily occur.

“Rest assured, I’ll store all your three precious items in the maintenance area for safekeeping.”

Old Pan patted his chest. “You can just go without worries.”

Lin Mo rolled his eyes.

“I hate the ocean.”

Standing on the deck of the cargo ship, Lin Mo gazed at the unending expanse of the sea, unable to help but murmur. Whether as a Dragon Knight or a pilot, he was meant for the skies, not drifting slowly on the boundless ocean. Having been away for half a month already, he wondered when they would arrive; by plane, it would take no more than a day.

He traveled with the last batch of four FC-20 export version J-10B fighter jets, departing from Beilun Port in Ningbo, Zhejiang. The ship crossed the East China Sea, traveled through the Taiwan Strait, entered the South China Sea, and proceeded directly into the Indian Ocean through the Strait of Malacca. From there, it passed the Maldives and Seychelles, arriving at Dar es Salaam, the capital of the United Republic of Tanzania, before going by rail to landlocked Zambia. With no sea outlet, supply routes had to go through neighboring countries.

Accompanying them were 22 security personnel, 2 engineers, and 4 air force instructors, along with a contact person for this delivery escort mission involving the four FC-20 units.

The cargo ship carrying Lin Mo and the fighter jets, named "Da Fei Yu," weighed 60,000 tons and had a crew of 30. This ship typically followed African shipping routes, and since they had armed escorts, they didn’t require naval ship protection.

“Captain Lin, what are you looking at?” A soldier in yellow camouflage, like Lin Mo, relaxed against the ship’s railing, watching the distant sea.

Those who had just seen the ocean might feel excited for a day or two at first, but within a week, they could become weary of the unchanging scenery. Constantly swaying in the cabin left many dazed and seasick, barely able to move.

“Looking for pirates!” Lin Mo responded, propping his chin and gazing off into the distance.

“Pirates? You can’t be serious!” The soldier was Captain Luo Chao, the leader of the escort team, who had been responsible for international arms export escorting for nearly five years. He had been to dozens of countries and was a seasoned veteran with combat experience.

“Based on their speed, contact will occur in 40 minutes!” Lin Mo remained unfazed, smirking, “I hate pirates!”

“Pirates? You must be joking…” Captain Luo Chao initially dismissed Lin Mo’s calm demeanor about pirates. However, upon hearing about the imminent contact in 40 minutes, he took it more seriously, grabbing his binoculars from his equipment belt and looking in the direction Lin Mo was facing.

On the ocean, even with binoculars, there were limits due to the curvature of the Earth’s surface; one could see up to 50 kilometers at most. This included the ship’s radar, which could only scan within the same distance. To extend the search range, one would have to elevate the radar position, but that too had limits. The most effective method remained the use of reconnaissance aircraft.

Captain Luo adjusted the binoculars to the highest magnification, scrutinizing for a moment before turning back to Lin Mo. “Wow! There really are pirates! Quite a few of them! Are your pilots’ eyesight really that exceptional?”

He knew that it was only through his 8x50mm German Steiner military binoculars that he could barely distinguish the four small speedboats racing toward them.

The "Da Fei Yu," loaded with the four FC-20 fighter jet cargo containers and other goods, would pass through waters near Somalia, one of the most chaotic countries known for piracy, causing headaches for all passing ships.

“Only a few have such eyesight; not every pilot has binoculars on their face,” Lin Mo replied with a slight smile towards Captain Luo. The vision requirement for aerial knights is that they must be able to see how many moles are on someone’s face from several kilometers away; that’s the bare minimum, otherwise, how could they spot ground targets from high altitudes? Furthermore, Lin Mo hadn’t even utilized the Light Mirror Technique yet.

“Alright, I’ll make arrangements. These pirates are simply too annoying; I dislike them as well! Just be careful and find somewhere to hide,” Captain Luo said without any panic after Lin Mo’s warning. For him, during past escort missions, he had encountered pirates many times and gained ample experience handling them. His subordinates were skilled marksmen armed with complete equipment.

For Lin Mo, Captain Luo needed little briefing. Pirates were no mere rogues; they were ruthless individuals who would kill without a second thought.

The escort team quickly organized, splitting into seven squads of three personnel each. Five squads were responsible for monitoring different sides of the ship to prevent piracy, while two squads acted as reserves for support. Captain Luo commanded from the cockpit alongside the captain, while the other crew members, engineers, and pilots sheltered in the dining hall.

As for the ship’s hull and containers, there was generally little need to worry about light weapons fire damage, especially the specialized containers holding the FC-20. Traditional 7.62 caliber AK-47 rounds could not penetrate the composite layers beneath the outer shell.

Regarded as normal persons could distinguish the four small black dots racing toward the Da Fei Yu from a distance, the 21 escort soldiers were readying for combat. Beyond each of them wielding a 95-style automatic rifle, they also had two 95-type light machine guns and several grenades, primarily relying on light firepower.

“Do you need a Gauss electromagnetic cannon?” Lin Mo’s left wrist twitched as he heard the voice of the gold giant dragon in his mind. This guy became restless whenever the subject of battle arose, especially after arriving in this world where he had to change his combat style for concealment, leaning more toward a practical approach rather than direct hand-to-hand combat.

“No need,” Lin Mo replied, shaking his head as he stood by the railing. The four speedboats followed a medium-sized fishing boat; it was possible that the unaccompanied fishing vessel was serving as the pirates’ supply boat. Each of the four speedboats had five or six pirates, nearly all armed with AK-47s and RPG-7 rocket launchers—the typical weapons of choice for terrorist organizations.